That Girl from Derwent dwells on the value of religion this Christmas.
That Girl from Derwent has learned a few more things about prejudice since moving up North.
That Girl From Derwent reckons if you're going to be offensive, you should find a better reason.
That Girl from Derwent considers why it is that some words have wider implications than others.
Berlusconi has, this year alone, accomplished so many political gaffs that it’s becoming a farce. The German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, was left standing at the reception to the Nato summit in April when Berlusconi waved her off - apparently his phone call was too urgent to miss and definitely more important than her. He recently attempted to appoint four of his young, good-looking female protégés who are, respectively, a trained ballerina, an actor, a professional singer and a former Miss Italy contestant, to the European Parliament, although sadly with no success. The relationship with his wife, long coveted by the press as one of the best domestic dramas in Italy, appears to finally be over - she has filed for divorce and published a letter to the Italian press stating she was unable to contain her disgust at his treatment of women and her frustration with his playboy antics, explaining she was a victim of the situation and would not accept his chauvinism.
Her allegation, that he is a playboy, is not without foundation. He has been notorious for his sponsorship of his 'butterflies', most notably of Mara Carfanga, a lawyer-turned-showgirl who he appointed to his cabinet as minister for Equal Opportunities in 2007, and this year has been no exception. He’s allegedly been coveting an 18 year old girl, Noemi Letizia (54 years his junior), who he’s been showering with gifts, praise and invitations to his villa - the very villa where he’s been throwing lavish parties, flying in guests using Italian Air Force planes, the use of which has prompted a judicial investigation.
The Spanish paper El Pais published photos of these parties, showing topless models lounging in the sunshine and naked businessmen enjoying their company, including a full-frontal shot of Mirek Topolanek, the former Czech Prime Minister, standing over a topless model whilst sporting an erection. In a more conventional setting, that of a courthouse in Rome, Berlusconi was convicted in May of bribing his lawyer to increase his chances, ironically enough, of avoiding a corruption charge. Finally, on a visit to the stricken city of L’Aquila, he famously told the spring earthquake victims to treat the whole experience as an extended camping holiday.
Berlusconi shows an amazing level of arrogance. He is a playboy, he has been convicted of giving bribes, he has no respect for women unless he finds them attractive, his wife has decided to divorce him because of his antics, and still he remains popular in Italy. He’s already had the longest running government in the history of the Italian Republic (he achieved this milestone in 2004), he is currently on his third term as Prime Minister, there is no foreseeable leadership challenge occurring against him and he has a share of the country’s media to rival that of Rupert Murdoch’s share of the media in this country. Our Prime Minister could certainly use a few tips from Berlusconi on how to consolidate his power and generate the same amount of loyalty and depth to his following as Berlusconi has, one which allows him to weather scandal after scandal far better than our present Incumbent.
How is he still in power? It always amazes me.
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